Theater Program

Creativity and collaboration are hallmarks of theater at Connecticut College

The College's theater program emphasizes both performance and study of literature and theory. We challenge students to work in all aspects of theater - acting, directing, playwriting, design, technical theater, dramaturgy and dramatic literature - so that they understand and engage in the process of creating theater, from initial creative spark to performance and post-performance evaluation and criticism.

We believe that a broad liberal arts education in theater produces graduates who are adaptable and self-directed. They are strong communicators, curious and disciplined learners, and creative and team-oriented collaborators. Theater study and training is ideal preparation for a life as an engaged citizen of the world, and serves as a foundation for future development as thinking artists and productive members of society.

Recent theater productions demonstrate a broad stylistic scope, from "I <3 Juliet," an original Hip Hop musical version of Romeo and Juliet, created and directed by The Q Brothers; to Sarah Ruhl's "Dead Man’s Cell Phone;" to the Stephen Sondheim musical theater milestone, "Into The Woods"; to a collectively created adaptation of Sophocles’ Antigone set in the turbulent anti-war movement of the 1960’s, "Four Dead in Ohio: Antigone at Kent State."

The College's performing arts series, onStage, brings professional theater companies to campus for performances and workshops.

Other highlights:

Any student can audition for virtually any theater production. Students don't have to be a theater major to audition or take part in a production.

Internships exist locally through the College's long-standing affiliations with the nearby Eugene O'Neill Theater Center, the Long Wharf Theater in New Haven, and the Labyrinth Theater Company, which holds its annual training and developmental retreat here on campus. In recent years, students have completed summer internships at NYC's Pearl Theatre, the Culture Project, the Signature Theatre, and The Public Theater, among others.

Theater students may choose to polish their skills in conservatory-based study away programs, such as the National Theater Institute at the O'Neill Theater Center. Our students have studied theater in Russia, Italy, Spain, and the United Kingdom.

Many theater majors intend to make theater their career, as actors, directors, playwrights, stage-managers, technicians, producers or educators. Connecticut College alumni are administrators in New York theaters, stage-managers for professional companies and actors in regional repertory companies, on Off-Off Broadway and on television and in film.